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"Eh? This... is this right?"
Before coming here, Sanae had mentally prepared herself for the worst. She expected a skeptic. She expected someone who would demand miracles or gifts. She even prepared scripts for handling "anti-theist trolls."
But she never expected Leo to be a zealot.
The moment he saw the statues, his eyes lit up with a fervor that would put the most devout shrine maiden to shame.
"I'll just ask," Leo said, carefully wrapping the statues in silk cloth. "Besides Lady Kanako and Lady Suwako... do you have a statue of yourself?"
He planned to build a grand altar. If two gods gave +20% buffs, imagine what adding a Living God would do!
"Eh? Me?" Sanae flushed, waving her hands frantically. "I can't do that! I'm just a Wind Priestess in training! I don't count as a god yet! Besides, my blessings only cause minor miracles!"
"Miracles? That's perfect! I'm not picky!" Leo grabbed her hands. "Sanae, please make a statue of yourself. I'll worship it day and night! The Moriya Shrine trinity must be complete!"
"But... carving a statue of myself... it's so embarrassing!"
Sanae covered her face. It felt incredibly narcissistic. It was like knitting a scarf for a boy, but ten times worse because you were knitting a scarf that said "WORSHIP ME."
"I'll have to trouble you," Leo said firmly, pressing a piece of Hardwood into her hands. "This is the best wood I have. Mahogany. Please carve it. I'll ask Nitori to build the altar right now. Let's go!"
He pushed the flustered shrine maiden toward the mountains.
In the shadows of a nearby tree, Aya Shameimaru watched them with dead, soulless eyes.
I will keep... always... watching you.
The Backwoods. Kappa Office Construction Site.
The area had transformed.
Hundreds of Little Kappas swarmed the site. Some were terraforming, digging a canal to divert water from the mountain lake to create a scenic "Water Village" aesthetic. Others were carving an ornate gate into the cliff face.
Leo stared.
Beyond the gate, inside the clearing for the new Spa, Nitori Kawashiro was driving a massive, heavy-duty excavator.
An excavator??
Leo rubbed his eyes. Where were the danmaku? Where was the magic? Why did this feel like a Soviet reconstruction project? He almost heard the Hell March playing in the background.
Down this bottle of vodka, and tonight the White House is my home.
"Oh! Isn't this Big Bro and Miss Sanae?"
Nitori spotted them, killed the engine, and hopped down from the cab.
"What brings you to the site today?"
"I have several commissions," Leo said. "Can you spare some manpower right now?"
He planned to settle everything. Tomorrow was rain—a perfect fishing day. He wanted the upgrades done before then.
"Several commissions? A big order!" Nitori's eyes turned into yen symbols. "Big Bro, this way! Let's talk over tea! I'll give you the 'Family Discount'!"
In the temporary shed, Nitori poured tea and pulled out her notepad.
"Okay, lay it on me."
"Commission 1: Kitchen Construction. Same as discussed. Be careful with my pickle jars."
"Commission 2: Moriya Altar. Needs to be weatherproof, majestic, and fit three statues."
"Commission 3: Fishing Pavilion. Build a permanent rain shelter at the river spot in town. I need it done before tomorrow."
"Commission 4: Tool Upgrades. Upgrade my Hoe, Axe, Pickaxe, and Watering Can to Copper. I have the ore."
Gold Ore was locked behind Floor 80 of the Mines. Leo wasn't there yet. But Copper tools were a massive quality-of-life improvement.
"No problem! We'll take them all!" Nitori scribbled furiously.
"Let me calculate the bill..."
Kitchen: 10,000 Gold + 450 Wood.
Altar & Pavilion: 5,000 Gold + 30 Stone.
Tool Upgrades: 2,000 Gold + 20 Copper Bars. (Package deal for all 4 tools).
"Total is 17,000 Gold," Nitori announced. "Plus materials. I'll throw in a full set of kitchen appliances and high-quality incense for the altar as a bonus."
"Deal," Leo paid immediately.
He didn't have the materials on him, but he could just send Chen to deliver them later. Today, he was going to tour the valley with Sanae.
Mining? Who cares about mining? He was walking with a Living God who radiated buffs!
This was Stardew Valley. There were no deadlines. No boss breathing down your neck.
Min-maxers could optimize every second. Lazy players could sleep for three years. Or you could raise 50 chickens and experience a locust plague every morning.
Leo chose to be happy.
And happiness was walking next to a cute shrine maiden who could make his crops grow faster.